Product Description

Eminent scholar and energetic storyteller Dr. David Starkey (The Six Wives of Henry VIII) serves as your guide through nearly 10 centuries of royal rule in England. From the fall of the Roman Empire to the Restoration, Starkey vividly describes the human drama behind the throne, with all its intrigue, lust, treachery, and thirst for power. You visit the very stages upon which history played out—Westminster Abbey, Bosworth Field, the dreaded Tower of London, and more—and explore the true character of the men and women who wore the crown.

In this rich tapestry, Starkey identifies a unifying thread. On one hand, England required authoritarian might to stand strong against external threats. On the other, it cherished its longstanding tradition of rule by consent of the governed. The dynamic tension between these two impulses enabled the monarchy to survive as the oldest-functioning political institution in Europe.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #17191 in DVD
• Released on: 2006-09-26
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 317 minutes

Amazon.com
Monarchy with David Starkey attempts to present "the power and passion behind 1,000 years of the English crown," as proclaimed on the DVD case. Hosted by Dr. David Starkey, a veteran presenter of several documentaries on English royal history (including The Six Wives of Henry VIII from 2001), this documentary is a six-episode overview of the history of the English monarchy, the oldest-functioning political institution in Europe. Volume 1 covers the early kings from the dissolution of Roman power in Britain, through the middle ages and up to the establishment of the House of Tudor, ending with the ascension to the throne of Henry VIII. Volume 2 focuses on Henry’s legacy, the question of succession that lead to Elizabeth I becoming queen, and carries us up through Cromwell and the Civil War to the Restoration with the return to the throne of Charles II. Starkey is filmed on location throughout England, Scotland, and France describing the events at the spots where they actually happened, but not every location is given its full due (in some cases, Starkey is seen standing at what is obviously an important memorial, but then fails to describe exactly where that is or what exactly transpired there) and several segments leave important details out, probably in the interest of saving time; a thousand years is a lot of ground to cover in only 332 minutes. As a result, Monarchy is a fast-moving overview of a fascinating segment of history, and not a close-up look that would require more time than six episodes could cover. But it does do an excellent job of elucidating the stories and presenting what is a unique theme throughout British royal history: the need of every monarch to balance protection of their authority by force while securing the consent of their subjects to rule. Students and those looking for an easily-digestible version of English history will really enjoy it. Committed Anglophiles and those interested in a more detailed look at the people and places involved might want to use this as a starting point and move on to more detailed accounts from there. --Daniel Vancini

Customer Reviews

Beware - This is abridged!
This is an abridgement of Monarchy Series One and Monarchy Series Two, released in the UK. These were originally 11 episodes, but have been condensed into 6 episodes for the US release. Do yourself a favor and purchase the UK release of Series One and Two and see the story as it was meant to be told. You may need to buy an all-region DVD player to view DVDs from the UK, but given that US releases are often bastardized, this is not a bad investment.

Don't be fooled by the release of 'Set 2' in the US. That starts with Charles II and is equivalent to 'Series Three' of the UK release.

Ambitious Undertaking
I agree with other reviewers that David Starkey's "Monarchy" provides a wonderful overview of the British monarchy from William the Conqueror to Charles II. Given the constraints of fitting so much history into just six hours, much background information is lost.

For those wanting more comprehensive information, an excellent resource is a 48-lecture college course "History of England From the Tudors to the Stuarts," taught by Dr. Robert Bucholz, Loyola University of Chicago. The course is available on DVD from The Teaching Company.

Incredible.
Dr. Starkey takes us on an epic adventure of intrigue, murder, revenge, and triumph. He makes the story of Britain's monarchy come alive through his energetic delivery, use of fine costumes and actors playing the historical characters, and the use of actual historical artifacts and historic settings. Not only is the series dramatic, but it's also highly informative, exploring in depth the development of Britain's monarchy as a political institution.

When Dr. Starkey describes with such great intensity things like the execution of Mary Queen of Scots, in the actual room where the execution took place 450 years ago, it's hard not to get caught up in the great intrigue and drama of Britain's monarchy.